After the Fall of New York . Weekly Alibi . 09-21-98

After the Fall of New York

DIRECTED BY: Sergio Martino

REVIEWED: 09-21-98

One of many thousands of Italian Road Warrior/Escape From New York rip-offs, After the Fall stands out by being not only hellishly entertaining, but for featuring a character named "Big Ape." It's 20 years after the nuclear holocaust, and the "Pan American Confederacy" is hot to breed up a new batch of citizens. Black-clad "Eurac" soldiers on horseback battle survivors in an attempt to round up subjects for experimentation, while "handsome, virile actor" (so sez the box) Michael Sopkiw (as Parsifal) takes part in some kind of hot rod demolition derby. Punk rock chicks shriek from the hilltops as Parsifal rains destruction on his foes, culminating in a bare-knuckle brawl and the approval of a weird clown robot. Parsifal rides off with his hot Italian girlfriend (who says "You're too much, Master--and you're going to make great love"), but is waylaid by members of the Pan Am Confederacy. These fellas take Parsifal to a secret base in Alaska, where they offer to fly him to Alpha Centauri (!) on an "interplanetary rocket" if he'll go to New York and bring back the "fertile woman" they've discovered there. Teaming up with a couple other guys, Parsifal hops on a motorcycle and heads for the Big Apple, accompanied by the wailing music of the mysterious desert trumpet-player. Nonstop action ensues as the boys make their way into Manhattan, stumbling across another juicy chick for Parsifal along the way. The evil Euracs capture Parsifal and his gang, but the amorous attentions of a sassy Eurac gal make it possible for everyone to escape. Our heroes hide out with a tribe of dwarves who live beneath the U.N. building before meeting up with--you guessed it--Big Ape! After a little making out (thankfully Big Ape isn't involved), the Ape and the Dwarf lead the others to the fertile woman--and fortunately for those who will have to do the repopulating, she looks like a model for Italian Vogue. Big Ape decides he wants first crack; the Euracs are closing in and all hell breaks loose as the flick careens toward its screwy climax. Damn, I love this movie.

--Scott Phillips

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